


A Lack of Dust and Choices

by monsterkiss



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series
Genre: F/F, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-11
Updated: 2013-08-11
Packaged: 2017-12-23 02:20:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/920839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/monsterkiss/pseuds/monsterkiss
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Humans are so interesting. One human, in particular.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Lack of Dust and Choices

As per her instructions, she cleaned the room thoroughly with her dark blue duster, swiping it daintily over the door frames, even gently brushing the cover of the Compendium. The dust does not spread. Indeed, between her, her master and their guest they hardly made enough mess to justify a monthly clean, never mind daily. Elizabeth had pointed this out once, and by the look Igor had given her over his folded hands she supposed this was one of those parts of her employment that were more about ceremony than practicality. Still, it gave her time to think.

The world of their guest seemed so incredibly vast, they must have thousands of dusters working every day to keep up with the rain of shed skin cells collecting on every surface. Their techniques must be highly refined; how unfortunate that she had yet to observe one! She would ask Minako when she next arrived.

It was probably wrong for her to think about her as often as she did. Minako, with her perpetual smile and dizzyingly wide potential. The one thing in their little world that was not perpetually clean and still. Staring into her eyes and seeing a hundred faces, infinite facets of her crystalline soul staring back at her… it was almost frightening. It was most remarkable that she was able to maintain any kind of self under such circumstances, especially in such trying times. But then again, she was a very remarkable guest.

In the endless hours bleeding into each other she leaned over Elizabeth’s shoulder, peering into the pages of the Compendium. Elizabeth could almost she her expression; the tiny line between her eyebrows, the tip of her tongue just beginning to poke out at the side of her mouth, so endearing (so perfectly practised, so much performance in her gestures and her smiles that it made her feel strangely maudlin).

“Which do you think?” she asked brightly, shuffling the cards laid out on the table.

“Hmm?”

"I can’t seem to decide which persona to fuse next.”

“And you want me to make a suggestion? Oh, I’m afraid that would be quite improper. I am merely a humble attendant, barely even a side-character in your fascinating narrative.”

She laughed, which was pleasing. “Don’t say things like that. C’mon, I’m just asking for your advice, you can do that much, right?”  
Elizabeth frowned a little. She glanced at her master out of the corner of her eye, but his face was turned away from her. Still, at least he wasn’t staring down his long nose at her with disapproval. “I… suppose it is very flattering that you would call on me to peer into the tapestry of your soul and pluck a likely thread… it is a great responsibility…”

She laughed again, a surprisingly small thing, with her hand resting against her lips, guarded. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to, you know.”

“No, I will try my very best to fulfil this duty you have appointed me. One moment while I look at the cards, please.” A pointless thing, as if she didn’t have every one of Minako’s personas and their possible combinations completely memorised. She wasn’t sure why she even said it, leaning in close enough to smell the scent of soap and fresh baking that had settled on her clothes. She pondered over the cards anyway, tilting her head this way and that, reaching out to straighten one or another.  
When she glanced up she saw her master staring intently at her, and suddenly worried that she was being tested.

“This combination would suit you very smartly, I believe, though of course all possible permutations are aspects of your soul.”

Minako looked over them and nodded to Igor, smiling. “Hua Po, right? You gave me the item to unlock that one.”

“Did I? Ah yes, in memory of our first outing together.”

“That was fun,” Minako murmured as the newly-born Hua Po fluttered around her, “we should hang out more often.”

“Hang… out? Hmm, perhaps a sturdy enough tree or a tall enough metal bar- oh, I see, you were referring, using your delightful human turn of phrase, to more visits to the strange places in your world.” She looked towards her master hopefully.

“It would be very remiss of you to shirk your duties by straying too long into a world not your own, Elizabeth,” he said. She frowned, resigned, and Minako moved as if to say something. “But if you can continue to honour your prior commitments while continuing your research then I suppose you may do so. However, I reserve the right as your employer to relinquish such extravagant privileges if I decide that your curiosity has gotten the better of your judgement. You cannot let your mind stray too far from the task at hand. That would be highly detrimental for both of you.” He inclined his nose towards Minako.

“I assure you, sir, I would never in my wildest fantasies dream of it,” she said. A sudden hot joy had welled up in her chest, and she had the urge to ask to leave that very moment, though of course that would be frightfully rude.

“I’ll watch out for her,” Minako said, smiling. She caught Elizabeth’s eye and the smile widened, brightening her eyes in a way that seemed to aggravate the warmth building under Elizabeth’s skin.

“How curious,” she said aloud, sliding the Compendium shut. Minako gave her a confused look that she was becoming increasingly used to, then stood, stretching.  
“I ought to leave. I think I’m about to reach the next landing of Tartarus. If I hurry everyone we should be there before the Dark Hour is up.” She glanced at Elizabeth, as if looking for confirmation, but didn’t seem perturbed when she merely smiled back. “I’ll see you later. Thanks for everything.”

She left, the door creaking shut behind her. “A strange young lady,” Igor mumbled, “but I believe she has the unique determination to see it all through to the very end. Don’t you agree?” He tilted his head towards her.

“It is not my place to predict such things, but she is very interesting.”

“Indeed. It is quite a shame that, one way or another, her time is drawing to a close.”

The heat in her chest dropped suddenly, and she found herself unable to hold her easy, professional smile. She’d never wished to be able to ignore the truth before - what would be the point? It would happen regardless - but that particular fact did not sit easily in her mind.

“Still, I do believe that, even if she knew her fate, her dedication would not at all falter. Perhaps that is her true talent, one for which our services are entirely extraneous.”

“Yes…” she whispered, “I do believe that you are right.” She shuffled uncomfortably on her feet. “I think… that I ought to get back to my cleaning, if that is alright?”

“Certainly. It has been left far too long as it is. I can feel the dust settling even as we speak.”

Elizabeth nodded and closed the book, letting her fingers rest briefly on the spot where Minako had fiddled with the pages before snapping it shut.


End file.
